We cannot move from the current health care system to an
ideal system overnight. We can move in the right direction, however, by adopting
policies designed to solve immediate problems in ways that also help us attain
the long-run goal. This agenda is designed to address five immediate problems:

The current system of
paying for health care is contributing to rising health care costs.

Too many Americans are
choosing not to purchase catastrophic health insurance for themselves and
their families.

Too many Americans who
have health insurance have been effectively denied the opportunity to choose a
less costly type of insurance policy or a policy which is better suited to
individual and family needs.

Too many Americans are
failing to save for health care expenses they are almost certain to incur
during the years of their retirement. .

There is increasing
danger that we are moving toward a system of health care rationing under which
individuals are denied the opportunity to purchase more (or better) health
care without suffering costly penalties.

These five problems
primarily are caused by unwise policies adopted by the federal government and by
state governments. This agenda is designed to create new incentives under which
people will find it in their self-interest to solve these problems through
individual initiative and choice. Accordingly, the provisions of this agenda
would expand the range of choices open to people – giving them greater
opportunity to purchase health insurance tailored to their own needs, to control
how their health insurance dollars are spent, and to save for medical expenses
which they will incur during the years
of their retirement. Specifically, this agenda would:

Give individuals
greater opportunity to choose among competing health insurance plans and to
select the type of coverage best suited for individual and family needs.

Give individuals the
opportunity to choose between group health insurance (provided by an
employer) and individual or family policies – without income tax penalties.

Give individuals the
opportunity to choose between self-insurance and third-party insurance for
small medical bills – without income tax penalties.

Give individuals the
opportunity to choose health insurance plans with effective cost-control
techniques and to realize the financial benefits from these choices –
without income tax penalties.

Give individuals the
opportunity to build a reserve of savings for future medical expenses, thus
allowing them to rely less on third-party insurance and to reduce their
annual health insurance premiums.

Give individuals greater opportunity to compare prices in the hospital
marketplace and realize the financial benefits of prudent buying practices.

Give people covered by Medicare and Medicaid opportunities to avoid the
harmful effects of health care rationing.

Give all participants in the medical marketplace an opportunity to avoid the
costly effects of the tort system through voluntary contract and exchange.